Orientation project and children s agentive orientation Jyrki Reunamo University of Helsinki Friday 10th May 2013 at Chang Gung University of Science and Technology www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 1
Orientation project 2008 - Preparing for the improved research and feedback cycle2013-2014 A valid and comprehensive research in 2009-2010 Dissemination, articles, books, 2012-2014 Analyzing and development tasks 2010-2013 Development models2012-2013 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 2
Finnish team Jyrki Reunamo (UH) Lasse Lipponen (UH) Leila Saros (University of Tampere) Anna-Liisa Kyhälä (UH) Satu Lehto (UH) Liisa Hakala (UH) Inkeri Ruokonen (UH) Marja Nurmilaakso (UH) Heini Paavola (UH) Marja-Liisa Akselin (University of Tampere) Helena Hällström (UH) Valo ry (National institution for PE) Alisa Alijoki (UH) IBM 10 cities in southern Finland www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 3
Taiwanese team Chao-Jung Lin, Associate professor, Department of Early Childhood Educare, Ching-Kuo Institute of Management and Health, Keelung Hui-Chun Lee, Associate professor, Tzu Chi University, Hualien Li-Chen Wang, Associate Professor, Department of Early Childhood Education and Care, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology Dr. Rosalind Wu, National Academy for Educational Research, Sanxia Wann-Yi Mau, Associate professor, Department of Early Childhood Educare, Ching-Kuo Institute of Management and Health, Keelung www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 4
2008/10 Connecting a personal interest to agency Each participant needs to find a personally meaningful and fruitful task Each partner needs to provide an item, a question and a statement Decision needed on the degree of team/personal preferences Refining the research plan 2008/11 Preparation of observation-, interview- and evaluation items 2009/02 Testing of the research tools A sound, effective and reasonable sphere of responsibilities Heads of the nurseries take the responsibility on tool testing? Apply for a research grant from the Academy of Finland College teachers take the responsibility on training the students in interviewing and observing? Finding a personal relevance for agency research Creating connections between UH and Ckimh The permission for data collection from parents 2009/08 Decision of the definite research tools Educators need some basic introduction in child interviewing and observation Educators need clear and simple enough research tools 2009/11-2010/07 Data collecting Search for possibilities in research exchange Students and staff as researchers Look for possibilities in teacher exchange Data input and data integration (meeting in Taiwan August 2010). Work on research report, articles, data considerations. Meeting in Finland in January 2011. Clear and simple data input instructions for educators Take part in exposing the dynamics of personal and environmental change Advancing to a better contact with agency A dynamic and productive learning environment for the students, staff and children Connecting Asia & Europe, Taiwan & Finland, Helsinki & Taipei/Keelung Presenting preliminary results at the EECERA conference in September 2011. Finding appropriate quantitative and qualitative methods for analysis Popular articles and dissemination Applying results with students and colleagues Professional credits and contacts Academic credits and contacts Preparation or articles and a book. Plans for dissemination in Taiwan and Finland. Need to find a personally meaningful and fruitful distribution of publishing Books on the different aspects of agency Scientific Journal articles Conference on the research project and results Conference in Taiwan in 2013. A small contribution to a better world : ) Orientaation lähteillä - varhaiskasvatuksen kehittämisprojekti / Suomi - Taiwan 6.5.2013 5
12. Think that you are playing a game and the other does not follow the rules, what do you do? Orientaation lähteillä - varhaiskasvatuksen kehittämisprojekti / Suomi - Taiwan www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 6
15. You are doing an important work and you fail, what do you do then? Orientaation lähteillä - varhaiskasvatuksen kehittämisprojekti / Suomi - Taiwan www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 7
Agentive perception in role play www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 8
Agentive perception in role play 2 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 9
Agentive perception in physical activity www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 10
The percentage of high PA in daily activities in comparison to all daily activity between 8:00 am and 12:00 High PA All activity 60 % 50 % 40 % 30 % 20 % 10 % 0 % Outdoor free play Indoor free play Direct Education inside Outdoor activity with teacher scaffold Basic carescaffolded play indoors Eating www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 11
The evaluated personal qualities in groups of children with no and at least some gross motor difficulties Evaluated skill No gross motor difficulties M At least some gross motor difficulties M Needs a lot of support in fine motor skills. 1.47 2.8 Needs a lot of support in learning and metacognitive skills. 1.77 2.9 Needs support in language communication skills. 1.52 2.62 Can concentrate easily. 4.05 3.42 Participates in and eagerly initiates activities. 3.92 3.26 Copes appropriately in new, challenging situations. 3.67 2.97 Is independent and self-directive. 4.05 3.3 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 12
Children s different objects of attention during low/medium PA and high PA activities 40 % 35 % 30 % 25 % 20 % 15 % 10 % 5 % 0 % A group of children Attention during low or medium PA Attention during high PA A child The whole situation Non-social object Adult www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 13
Children s different objects of attention during low/medium PA and high PA activities outdoors 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 Play or exploring with toys and physical setting Not high PA Hanging about together with others. Role play or imaginary play High PA Rule play Orientation www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 14
Agentive perception and language Environmental adaptation skills Personal ideas Agentive language Shared creation of language environment Openness to suggestions Personal language skills Zone of proximal language development Personal adaptation www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 15
The activities of less and more support needing children between 8:00-12:00 in day care 20.00 % Less support in language needing children More support in language needing children 15.00 % 10.00 % 5.00 % 0.00 % Orientation Play or exploring with toys, materials and physical setting Action not allowed Task or seatwork Hanging about together with others. Role play or imaginary play www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 16
The means of children s evaluated skills in the less and more support needing groups of children Quality and skill description Children needing less support in language(m) Children needing more support in language (M) Needs a lot of support in learning and metacognitive (learning to learn) skills. 2.04 3.74 Needs a lot of support in fine motor skills. 1.91 3.17 Needs a lot of support in gross motor development. 1.64 2.56 Withdraws easily, contacts with other children are often weak. 1.90 2.70 Can concentrate easily 3.89 3.07 Copes appropriately in new challenging situations. 3.47 2.60 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 17
Children s interaction strategies in the less and more language support needing groups of children Children s descriptions in the interview Less language support needing children More language support needing children The sum of all accommodative answers 29 % 25 % The sum of all participative answers 36 % 30 % The sum of all dominating answers 12 % 14 % The sum of all withdrawn answers 11 % 11 % The sum of all uncertain or undefined answers 13 % 20 % www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 18
The mean skill values of the peer contacts of the less and more language difficulties having children Quality and skill description Peer contacts of the less language support needing children (M) Peer contacts of the more language support needing children (M) Needs a lot of support in fine 1.94 2.29 motor skills. Needs support in language 1.92 2.25 communication skills Needs a lot of support in learning 2.14 2.41 and metacognitive (learning to learn) skills. 12Has good social skills in a 3.74 3.42 group of children. 7Recognizes own feelings and 3.40 3.07 copes with them. 14Can concentrate easily 3.87 3.54 www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 19
Instrumental tools Aristotelian ideas. The power of ideas is in the application of it in real life situations. Pure thinking can have an unexpected relation to reality. Ideas explain reality and have an effect on reality. Ideas area tool to get things done or understood. Ideas are a powerful instrument for constructing and analyzing reality. The problem is in the practical enforcement of ideas. Agentive assimilation Agentive accommodation Aristotle (nature adapts to the purpose, not Popper. Suppositions can be tested only Agency: the other way around). Teleology, Hegel, indirectly by examining the effects of the Environmental change Marx, motives, goals, plans, production, experiment. Through persistent testing we gives opportunities to organization, control, management, results. can reduce badly working inferences. produce new content The events happen on a timeline from the other. Experimentation and tests produce new past to the future. Because now is a Ideas content. are From reflected a small e.g. seed, in complex morality, and fleeting moment, the important Agentive things are rich processes Agentive can be created. Ecology, situated in the future. assimilation The event is related creativity, feedback. The event relates to its accommod to the image in the future and is now own potential, which is almost endless. Assimilation: Accommodation: unsatisfactory. A new solution Equilibrium: too. ation A new solution is is not sought The processing sought from the from the of ideas and environment Adaptive environment, assimilation perceptions through the The event but one s is own a complicated crossroads feed each Proximal other Adaptative development accommodation testing of Platonic of tastes, ideas discourse, are needs and social As reality Ideas. exists, ideas it is reasonable are out there. conditions to The forces, without applied a shared understand it. A good way to relate to the Adaptive whole. Situations problem is how to find them. reflect different ideas. Using the same idea environment Adaptive is to adapt to it. The mind is in a different situation assimilation creates a different reaching open to the occurring events. In the accommodation out for the social or physical event content environment of ideas. a whole, everything is Poststructuralism, postmodernism, connected. Adaptation: evolution theory, difference, coincidental, Structuralism, constructivism, Heidegger, Better fulfillment find hermeneutics, of the needs important probability. The event is related to different integration, or relevant synergy, ideas. and more possibilities rearrangement. to alternatives. The events are not An event is related to the enhance whole. life necessarily related. Actual development Symbolic ideas. Ideas are images of reality, shadows, philosophy or science defined by people. Ideas represents themselves in human understanding, operations and schemas. Ideas are personal shadows applied or defined, it s like a game. There is o lot of personal idea systems. The problem is their preference and their questionable relation to reality. Producing tools Cultural ideas. Ideas are cultural products without predefined content or axioms. The problem is to use culturally relevant ideas. Culture and ideas have an effect on each science and society. The problem is that when ideas are used in cultural contexts they have ethical and esthetic connections People can get access to the real ideas by There are the real ideas. The problem is to Jyrki Reunamo Universit
The Purpose of the Orientation Project To find out what really happens in Finnish and Taiwanese day care. Study how children s orientations, skills and peer relations impact the activities. Study the ways the educators actions and the learning environment are related to the unfolding activities. Find ways to have a concrete and positive impact on the studied action. www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 21
The Motives of the Project To create practical and meaningful instruments for measuring and evaluating Early Learning. To expose the basic ingredients that produce the activities in the learning environment. To evaluate the cultural factors by comparing Finnish and Taiwanese cultural differences. Identical researches in both countries at the same time. Based on the research results more than 200 development tasks for the educator teams in both countries have been produced by Reunamo and the results for the tasks presented in Taiwan May 2013. To disseminate the found results and the produced models to solve the development tasks nationally and internationally. To change Early Childhood Education from running after educational objectives and towards working with the orientations that steer the processes. www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 22
Measurable Results The observation instrument and the other instruments are independent from each other, which means that the found connections reflect some real connections between phenomena. It has been proposed that in 2015 the data would be collected anew to evaluate the accomplished changes and to reveal underlying trends. www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 23
Further info on Orientation project Project blog http://blogs.helsinki.fi/orientate/development-tasks/ The Scientific Products of the APU Project http://blogs.helsinki.fi/orientate/products/the-scientificproducts-of-the-apu-project/ Research news http://blogs.helsinki.fi/orientate/category/research/ www.helsinki.fi/yliopisto 6.5.2013 24